Courthouse Planning - Part 4

Now that I have a good idea of records that are at the courthouse in Macon County, Illinois, I need to see what holdings are at the library. Sometimes records are transferred to the library and often there are copies of and indexes for the county records.

The Decatur Public Library does have a local history room, according to the website. It is open limited hours. Based on the information online, I don't see much of value. It has old newspapers, but they are also available to me via my Ancestry subscription.

The collections that could be useful:

• Obituary index for 1879 - 2012
• Maps and plats
• Local history books
• Cemetery books, but I've seen them

I don't see the WPA Historical Records Survey listed, nor do I find it in the online catalog. I've sent an email to the local history contact email to ask if it's in their collection.

Since the local history room is only open from 10-5 on the day I plan to be there, I'd have to plan a break from courthouse research, perhaps at lunch time. It will depend on how the day is going. It's definitely not a high priority unless they have the WPA booklet.